It's over

By Jason Wojciechowski on September 24, 2005 at 4:18 PM

So the A's are done, which is depressing, because they got so close, and now the final games with the Angels probably aren't even going to matter. There's still a chance, obviously, but it's very slim, particularly considering Anaheim's seven-game win-streak. The Angels are playing like they're supposed to down the stretch, and the A's have fallen apart, due in some measure (I'll say it again) to injuries.

This off-season, Billy Beane may need to sit down and take a look at what his medical staff did this year. Were most of the injuries really things that the team was preparing against, but happened anyway? Or was the preparation not done, or just not done well enough? Starting over with a new medical staff would strike me as hasty, and isn't Beane's style anyway (when's the last time he fired someone aside from a hitting coach?), so changes aren't likely to be major, but I wouldn't be surprised if the A's quietly made some procedural adjustments this winter.